8 The Lord will be judge of the peoples; give a decision for me, O Lord, because of my righteousness, and let my virtue have its reward.
But you, why do you make yourself your brother's judge? or again, why have you no respect for your brother? because we will all have to take our place before God as our judge. For it is said in the holy Writings, By my life, says the Lord, to me every knee will be bent, and every tongue will give worship to God. So every one of us will have to give an account of himself to God.
Before the Lord, for he is come; he is come to be the judge of the earth; the earth will be judged in righteousness, and the peoples with unchanging faith.
You are witnesses, with God, how holy and upright and free from all evil was our way of life among you who have faith;
For our glory is in this, in the knowledge which we have that our way of life in the world, and most of all in relation to you, has been holy and true in the eyes of God; not in the wisdom of the flesh, but in the grace of God.
For I am not conscious of any wrong in myself; but this does not make me clear, for it is the Lord who is my judge. For this reason let there be no judging before the time, till the Lord comes, who will make clear the secret things of the dark, and the designs of the heart; and then will every man have his praise from God.
Be my judge, O God, supporting my cause against a nation without religion; O keep me from the false and evil man.
<Of David.> O Lord, be my judge, for my behaviour has been upright: I have put my faith in the Lord, I am not in danger of slipping.
So he gave them food with an upright heart, guiding them by the wisdom of his hands.
And as for me, you are my support in my righteousness, giving me a place before your face for ever.
Be my judge, O Lord my God, in your righteousness; do not let them be glad over me. Let them not say in their hearts, So we will have it: let them not say, We have put an end to him. Let all those who take pleasure in my troubles be shamed and come to nothing: let those who are lifted up against me be covered with shame and have no honour. Let those who are on my side give cries of joy; let them ever say, The Lord be praised, for he has pleasure in the peace of his servant.
For my clean and upright ways keep me safe, because my hope is in you.
The Lord gives me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean before him. For I have kept the ways of the Lord; I have not been turned away in sin from my God. For all his decisions were before me, and I did not put away his laws from me. And I was upright before him, and I kept myself from sin. Because of this the Lord has given me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean in his eyes.
The Lord is in his holy Temple, the Lord's seat is in heaven; his eyes are watching and testing the children of men.
And he will be the judge of the world in righteousness, giving true decisions for the peoples.
May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, be our judge. Then Jacob took an oath by the Fear of his father Isaac.
Let such a thing be far from you, to put the upright to death with the sinner: will not the judge of all the earth do right?
Because a day has been fixed in which all the world will be judged in righteousness by the man who has been marked out by him for this work; of which he has given a sign to all men by giving him back from the dead.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Psalms 7
Commentary on Psalms 7 Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalm 7
It appears by the title that this psalm was penned with a particular reference to the malicious imputations that David was unjustly laid under by some of his enemies. Being thus wronged,
In this David was a type of Christ, who was himself, and still is in his members, thus injured, but will certainly be righted at last.
Shiggaion of David, which he sang unto the Lord, concerning the words of Cush the Benjamite.
Psa 7:1-9
Shiggaion is a song or psalm (the word is used so only here and Hab. 3:1)-a wandering song (so some), the matter and composition of the several parts being different, but artificially put together-a charming song (so others), very delightful. David not only penned it, but sang it himself in a devout religious manner unto the Lord, concerning the words or affairs of Cush the Benjamite, that is, of Saul himself, whose barbarous usage of David bespoke him rather a Cushite, or Ethiopian, than a true-born Israelite. Or, more likely, it was some kinsman of Saul named Cush, who was an inveterate enemy to David, misrepresented him to Saul as a traitor, and (which was very needless) exasperated Saul against him, one of those children of men, children of Belial indeed, whom David complains of (1 Sa. 26:19), that made mischief between him and Saul. David, thus basely abused, has recourse to the Lord. The injuries men do us should drive us to God, for to him we may commit our cause. Nay, he sings to the Lord; his spirit was not ruffled by it, nor cast down, but so composed and cheerful that he was still in tune for sacred songs and it did not occasion one jarring string in his harp. Thus let the injuries we receive from men, instead of provoking our passions, kindle and excite our devotions. In these verses,
As far as we have the testimony of an unbiased conscience for us that in any instance we are wronged and injuriously reflected on, we may, in singing these verses, lodge our appeal with the righteous God, and be assured that he will own our righteous cause, and will one day, in the last day at furthest, bring forth our integrity as the light.
Psa 7:10-17
David having lodged his appeal with God by prayer and a solemn profession of his integrity, in the former part of the psalm, in this latter part does, as it were, take out judgment upon the appeal, by faith in the word of God, and the assurance it gives of the happiness and safety of the righteous and the certain destruction of wicked people that continue impenitent.
In singing this psalm we must do as David here does (v. 17), praise the Lord according to his righteousness, that is, give him the glory of that gracious protection under which he takes his afflicted people and of that just vengeance with which he will pursue those that afflict them. Thus we must sing to the praise of the Lord most high, who, when his enemies deal proudly, shows that he is above them.